Table 2 Comparisons of willingness for childbirth, fertility knowledge, and value of motherhood or fatherhood between men and women among college students from South Korea in 2021 (N = 286)
Variables | Categories | Total | Men (n = 144) | Women (n = 142) | χ2 or t(p) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
n(%) or M ± SD | ||||||
Willingness for childbirth (including marriage) | ||||||
Willingness for future childbirth | No | 68(23.8) | 17(11.8) | 51(35.9) | 26.85 (< 0.001) | |
Yes | 139(48.6) | 88(61.1) | 51(35.9) | |||
Unsure | 79(27.6) | 39(27.1) | 40(28.2) | |||
Expected childbirth age (n = 139) | Range (28–39) | 32.32 ± 2.32 | 32.76 ± 2.25 | 31.55 ± 2.27 | 3.06 (0.003) | |
28–30 | 29(20.9) | 12(13.6) | 17(33.3) | 9.04 (0.011) | ||
31–34 | 82(59.0) | 54(61.4) | 28(54.9) | |||
≥ 35 | 28(20.1) | 22(25.0) | 6(11.8) | |||
Desired number of children (n = 139) | Range (1–4) | 2.10 ± 0.56 | 2.16 ± 0.57 | 2.00 ± 0.53 | 1.68 (0.096) | |
1 | 12(4.2) | 6(6.9) | 6(11.8) | 3.32 (0.190) | ||
2 | 103(36.0) | 63(72.4) | 40(78.4) | |||
≥ 3 | 23(20.7) | 18(8.4) | 5(9.8) | |||
Willingness for future marriage | No | 32 (11.2) | 7(4.9) | 25(17.6) | 14.68 (0.001) | |
Yes | 195(68.2) | 111(77.1) | 84(59.2) | |||
Unsure | 59(20.6) | 26(18.1) | 33(23.2) | |||
Expected marriage age (n = 195) | Range (24–50) | 30.90 ± 2.87 | 31.30 ± 2.36 | 30.38 ± 3.37 | 2.23 (0.027) | |
24–27 | 14(7.2) | 4(3.6) | 10(11.9) | 12.26 (0.007) | ||
28–30 | 93(47.7) | 46(41.4) | 47(56.0) | |||
31–34 | 73(37.4) | 51(45.9) | 22(26.2) | |||
≥ 35 | 15(7.7) | 10(9.0) | 5(6.0) | |||
Fertility knowledge | Range (0–13) | 7.40 ± 2.12 | 7.72 ± 2.11 | 7.08 ± 2.09 | 2.53 (0.012) | |
Value of motherhood or fatherhood | Range (8–32) | 25.0 ± 4.24 | 26.51 ± 3.68 | 23.54 ± 4.25 | 6.34 (< 0.001) | |